300 Area Treated Effluent Disposal Facility permit reopener run plan

The 300 Area Treated Effluent Disposal Facility (TEDF) is authorized to discharge treated effluent to the Columbia River by National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit WA-002591-7. The letter accompanying the final permit noted the following: EPA recognizes that the TEDF is a new waste treatment facility for which full scale operation and effluent data has not been generated. The permit being issued by EPA contains discharge limits that are intended to force DOE`s treatment technology to the limit of its capability.`` Because of the excessively tight limits the permit contains a reopener clause which may allow limits to be renegotiated after at least one year of operation. The restrictions for reopening the permit are as follows: (1) The permittee has properly operated and maintained the TEDF for a sufficient period to stabilize treatment plant operations, but has nevertheless been unable to achieve the limitation specified in the permit. (2) Effluent data submitted by the permittee supports the effluent limitation modifications(s). (3) The permittee has submitted a formal request for the effluent limitation modification(s) to the Director. The purpose of this document is to guide plant operations for approximately one year to ensure appropriate data is collected for reopener negotiations